Oh my goodness, it’s been a crazy few months for me. I’ve missed you! I hope you all are safe and well.

I’m super excited to get back into crafting. It’s my escape from the mess of the world, but the crafting sessions have been few and far between.

Lately, I’ve been spending time planting and organizing a garden. This is a strange new hobby for me because I’m not great at planting anything. A few years ago, I started growing herbs and it took me a while to get the hang of that. I even made cute planters for each herb as well as these garden markers for a handful of herbs I planted a few years later.

I’m getting to the storage container, I promise. Throughout my gardening journey, I learned that strawberry containers work as great mini-greenhouses for my plants. Thus, I have many strawberry containers laying around. This year, there was excess. I thought, what am I going to do with these!

You all know how I love organization and storage containers. I’ve made so many, and today there will be more! Save your strawberry containers because you can make this cute farmhouse style storage box with them.

They’re the perfect size for pens and pencils and I love throwing in odds and ends to keep the organized but fashionably, of course.

If you want to make your own, grab the supplies and follow the steps below!

Storage container supplies

My content contains affiliate links to products I use and love. If you take action (purchase, subscribe) after clicking the links, I get some crafting money which helps me continue to write awesome tutorials for you! This costs you nothing but enables you to support my work.

Step 1: Glue the jute to the container

Flip your strawberry container over so you’re looking at the bottom.

Along one of the corners, glue the end of your rope to the plastic. Don’t add too much glue or the container will begin to melt!

Step 2: Wrap the rope around the container

You’ll want to add a drop of glue to the rope every inch or so and hold it tightly against the container. Every inch or so keeps you from wasting glue but is enough to make the rope stick to the container.

Step 3: Cut the rope and fasten it

Now that you’ve reach the lip of the bottom of the container, you can cut the rope at an angle and glue it in place.

You can stop there if you want. I don’t prefer the plastic sticking out, so I also like to wrap the rope around the lip of the strawberry container. Move on to step 4 if you’d like to do the same.

Step 4: Continue around the top

At this point, I cut the top off of the container and start the wrapping process again.

However, this time we’re going to start around the projection. You know, the little round pieces that the container lid connects to the hold the lid on. Glue your rope to the outside of that piece and continue gluing (just like you did in on the bottom section). Make sure you stay on the outer edges so the rope aligns with the projections.

You’ll probably need about 3 layers (depending on the size of your rope) to completely hide the plastic.

That’s it! When you’re finished, you’ll have an adorable farmhouse style storage container that you can feel good about because you upcycled it. I hope you’re as excited as I was to use this.

I’d love to get your feedback so leave your thoughts in the comments.

Happy crafting!

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With most people working from home due to coronavirus, I wanted to give you all a craft that can also contribute to your day-to-day mindset. This is an 8.5×11 poster that you can print out at home and, hopefully, help you to think positively.

Anyone who knows me calls me a pessimist, and for a long time I thought of myself as a realist. Over the past few years, I’ve recognized the power of positivity in my mindset.

Not to get all sappy on you, but the last few years have been the hardest I’ve experienced and having a positive person and positivity around me generally has helped me push through some challenging times. Maybe something as simple as a positive poster could help you do the same.

Before we get into this craft project, you need to know that you can do this two ways.

Print the poster first and then paint: this will give the font a weathered look. The black ink won’t be as vibrant as it would if you went with option 2. I kind of like this look.

Paint on paper first and then print: This keeps all of the paint and ink looking pristine.

I made both of these so you can see which one you like best.

Option 1: Print the poster, then paint

Option 2: Paint the poster, then print

Have you decided which one you like best?

Great, grab the supplies below and we’ll get stared.

Positive quote watercolor poster supplies

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Step 1: download the poster

Right click on the image above and click “Save Image As”.

Choose a name for your file and save it.

If you want to paint over the text like in the first option above, go ahead and print it on your cardstock paper now.

If you want to print over the paint, move on to the next step.

Step 2: paint the poster

Go ahead and paint your poster.

Choose a few colors you like that go well together. I picked pink, purple and blue.

Step 3: touch up the edges (optional)

When you’re finished, get your paint brush wet and roll it in the paint. Then, brush it along the edges like in the image above.

Hopefully it will remind you to think about the positive things in your life and to be grateful for what you have. When you’re positive, life seems to go more smoothly.

I’d love to see what you’re making! Using the #MakeSomethingMondays on social to share it with me. I’m usually over on Instagram checking out everyone’s masterpieces. I just started my account on IG late last year, so I have a lot of catching up to do! If you follow me here, come check out the fun stuff I’m doing there as well.

Happy crafting!

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It’s been an interesting few weeks for everyone, hasn’t it? Coronavirus is changing the way we live and I want to acknowledge that, but I don’t want to focus on negative things. I hope you are all safe and healthy at home and are doing your best to entertain yourselves. My craft this week is to keep you positive.

I’ve made a mountain bracelet to remind myself of the things that make me happy. In this case, that’s hiking, camping, being outdoors, etc. I plan to wear it every day to keep my spirits high.

You don’t need many supplies and it takes about 15 minutes to craft.

You can get the supply list below.

Mountain bracelet supplies

My content contains affiliate links to products I use and love. If you take action (purchase, subscribe) after clicking the links, I get some crafting money which helps me continue to write awesome tutorials for you! This costs you nothing but enables you to support my work.

Step 1: create the bracelet band

Cut two pieces of embroidery thread. When folded in half, each piece should be able to wrap the whole way around your wrist.

If you feel these are too long, you can cut them down later. It’s better to have more slack at first.

Step 2: string the embroidery thread through the charm

Slide the thread through the mountain charm and tie a knot right beside it like in the image above.

Step 3: tie knots at the ends of the bracelet

At the end of the bracelet bands, tie a knot. This keep the bands from sliding through the closure we’ll add in the next step.

Keep the bands in this position (in the image) for the next step.

Step 4: create the closure

Find the intersection of the bands and create a closure around them.

Cut another piece of embroidery thread about 6″ long and use a series of square knots (about 5) to create a closure.

If you’re not sure how to make a square knot, watch this video.

When you’re finished, test pulling the bands back and forth through the closure. You should easily be able to loosen and tighten the bracelet. All good? Great.

This is completely optional, but it’s beneficial to super glue the knots to make sure they don’t come apart.

When you’re finished, you should have something that looks like this.

This is a great craft to make on your own, with your kids, with friends, etc. You could even make this on a virtual craft chat!

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I’m a big fan of upcycling, so I’ve written this post to help you turn your old cardboard boxes into beautiful storage bins!

I often wonder why people go buy boxes for storage when they probably have some waiting to be recycled. I guess it’s a matter of convenience, but I’m pretty sure I made 2 storage bins before I could’ve made it back from the store.

No joke. It took me about 10 minutes to finish these boxes. You only need a few supplies to get started and you probably have most of them already. If not, I have links to all of the supplies I used below.

DIY Storage Bin Supplies

My content contains affiliate links to products I use and love. If you take action (purchase, subscribe) after clicking the links, I get some crafting money which helps me continue to write awesome tutorials for you! This costs you nothing but enables you to support my work.

Step 1: cut the flaps off of the cardboard box

Using your box cutter, slice the closing tabs (what do you actually call those?) off of the box and set them aside.

TIP: You can use these as separators inside of the box for extra organization. Cover them in contact paper too!

Step 2: measure and cut the contact paper

Set your box at the edge of the contact paper to measure how much you will need. The best part is that the back of the contact paper contains gridlines so you don’t even need a ruler!

Cut on the right lines.

Once you determine how tall the box is, you can cut the contact paper to that height and just use one long strip to cover the whole box. It’s much faster than cutting 4 pieces to fit each side. You can always cut down the paper where the top of the box is uneven.

Step 3: apply the contact paper

Apply your contact paper to all 4 sides of the cardboard box. Press down firmly and continue to smooth it as you go.

The upside of using contact paper is that it’s sticky but not uncomfortably so. When you peel the back off and apply the paper, you can lift and reapply if it’s not perfectly straight the first time, so don’t stress about perfection. 🙂

When you’re finished, you’ll have a beautiful new storage bin. AAAAANNNNDDD you can feel good about upcycling at the same time!

Have you tried this before? Would you try it? Have you tried a different method? I’d love to hear your thoughts. Leave them in the comments below.

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A few days ago, I asked my Instagram followers what kinds of crafts they wanted to see in the next few months. Nearly everyone who responded wanted to learn how to make crafts that would help them organize their home, car, or life in general. I thought we would start with the basics: containers.

Glass jars are the perfect tool to organize with because you don’t have to pay extra for them. You get them when you buy pasta, pickles, salsa, and a ton of other products. All you have to do is remove the label, clean, and reuse them.

Most people toss them in the recycling and move on with their day. I’m not against recycling, but glass lasts forever! It would take nearly a million years to decompose if it was thrown out. By doing that, you’re missing out on an organizational opportunity. If you buy containers to organize, you can spend a lot, especially when it comes to your kitchen. You could just save your jars, clean them and use them to store food.

Most people think it’s too time-consuming, but I promise it isn’t. Give yourself 10 minutes of active cleaning and you can clean a dozen jars. There’s some waiting time, but you can go do other things.

Grab the supplies and follow the steps below to save some money organizing your kitchen.

Supplies needed to clean glass jars

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You’ll want to do this in your kitchen sink so plan accordingly.

Step 1: spray your labels with Goo Gone

I always try to peel the label off first. Sometimes they’re easy to remove, but if not, continue with the steps below.

Place your jars on a surface you don’t care about. I like to use cardboard so I don’t have to clean up my kitchen counter when I’m done.

Then, spray your labels with Goo Gone and let them sit for 2 or 3 minutes.

While you wait, fill your sink with hot water and add dish soap. You’ll want to fill it so that the jars can be completely submerged.

Before

After

Step 2: scrub away the jar’s label

Using your stainless steel scouring pad, scrub away the label. This won’t take long. This process will work on paper labels and on the sticky residue leftover from other types of labels.

As you can see in the images above, this method works well!

Rinse the jar when you’re finished.

Step 3: soak the jars in hot soapy water

Let your jars soak in the sink for 20 minutes to clean them out and make sure they’re ready to use.

Set them in a dish drainer to dry.

TIP: If you’re keeping the jars in storage before putting anything in them, make sure you keep the lids off of them to air out.

Step 4: use your jars as storage

All you have left to do is fill up your jars! I like to use mine for nuts, coconut, baking ingredients, granola, parmesan cheese, and so much more!

But you don’t have to use them in the kitchen only. Here are a few ideas to get you started.

DIY Decor: Bathroom Storage Jars

Keep these in your bathroom and store Q-tips, cotton balls, or even homemade lotion.

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I love making dashboards for my planner! You can buy them, but designing your own is way more fun. To make one, all you need is a tissue box, glue and some scrapbook paper.

For those of you who are unfamiliar, a planner dashboard is used as a divider that is typically made of plastic or cardboard. Some people use them to store post-its, some are used as a storage folder (which I’ve also DIYed if you’re interested), others use them as a place to keep their checklists.

I like many of these options, but right now, I need something to segment pages, much like a bookmark. I’ve tried page corner bookmarks and paperclip bookmarks to keep my place, but I open it and shuffle through the pags too often and they keep falling off or damaging the pages. I need something that’s easier to move around like a dashboard.

Of course, I didn’t want to buy one, so I made my own and I’ll show you how I did it below. Keep reading!

Planner dashboard supplies

My content contains affiliate links to products I use and love. If you take action (purchase, subscribe) after clicking the links, I get some crafting money which helps me continue to write awesome tutorials for you! This costs you nothing but enables you to support my work.

Step 1: cut apart your tissue box

Disassemble your tissue box and cut off the long edges on the sides. You could use the bottom too, if you want a larger dashboard.

Step 2: determine the size of your dashboard tab

I wanted my dashboard to have a tab so I can find my place faster. I decided how tall it should be and measured and cut for that space.

Step 3: measure the scrapbook paper to fit your dashboard

Step 4: decorate your planner dashboard

Glue the scrapbook paper cut outs onto the front and back of your dashboard to add some flair!

I really like this yellow and blue scrapbook paper. It’s such a fun, modern design that matches my planner perfectly.

Let the glue dry.

At this point, you could laminate the dashboard if you want. This enables you to write and erase or just protect the paper.

Step 5: hole punch the dashboard to fit in your planner

Hole punch the dashboard and put it wherever you want in your planner!

Depending on the type of planner you have, you might need a specific kind of hole punch. Mine requires one for a disc bound planner. I don’t have the right kind of hole punch so I cheat a little bit.

In the image above, you’ll notice that I’ve used another page in my planner to mark where the holes should go. Then I took a regular hole punch (single) and punched a hole over each mark. Then I used my scissors to cut a slit up to the hole so it will fit around the discs.

When you’re finished, you’ll have something like this!

I’m loving my new dashboard. I can find my place much faster and it keeps my pages from getting ripped up from.

Eventually, I’m planning to design dashboards with motivational says and images you can colors to add some individuality. I’ll post a link to that when I do.

In the meantime, I’d love to get your thoughts on this process. Have you made your own dashboards? If so please share your pictures on social media using #MakeSomethingMondays!

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If you’re new to growing plants, this easy DIY project will definitely help you get started!

A few years ago, I got really excited about growing plants like herbs, vegetables, etc. Stuff I could use in the kitchen. But, I learned very quickly that I’m bad at it because I didn’t know how much water my plants needed.

I followed the advice of friends and started with a mint plant. “You can’t kill mint” they said. Well, I killed 3 of them before I figured out how to properly water them. If I had known about this draining option, I would’ve been enjoying herbs in my food and drinks much faster!

All you need is a plastic bottle so this is great opportunity to upcycle! When you’re finished with your orange juice or soda, hang onto the bottle and use it for your very own beginning planter! Follow the steps below to make your own.

Self-watering planter supplies

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Step 1: cut off the top of your container

Cut off the top 1/3 of your container. Make sure the part the tapers inward is all on the top. You can see how it will be used in the image below.

Step 2: create the self-draining container

Flip the top section of the container upside down and place it in the bottom section.

Now, fill it with soil.

Step 3: plant your seeds

Stick a finger into the soil to create a space for your seeds or plant.

Now you can place the seed inside and cover it up. If you’re planting more than one, make sure you check how far apart and how deep they should be planted. Full disclosure, I’m kind of bad at that part.

I’m planting garlic from bulbs, not seeds, and I know that they need to be planted about a thumb-size deep and need to be about 4″ apart. After I took this picture, I decided to move one of the bulbs because I didn’t think they would be both get enough nutrients.

When you’re finished, you should have something that looks like this.

Now you can water your plant. The water will fall into the bottom of the container and you won’t have to worry about overwatering your plant. But pay close attention to how much water your plant needs. Once you have a good idea of how much to use, you can transfer your plant to another pot and plant something new in this one.

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Did you know you can repurpose your old alcohol bottles as candlestick holders? It looks classy and vintag-y all at the same time. I love it!

Save your wine, whiskey, beer, and vodka bottles. You don’t even have to take the label off. It’s a nice way to upcycle glass since it generally takes longer for them to get recycled anyway. If you could reuse them, why not? Especially if you’re adding some oomph to your living room, man cave, patio, or wherever.

There’s actually a cute Italian restaurant in my hometown that uses their old wine bottles to make these, which is where I got the idea. I’ve always loved that they place a bottle at each table to give it a romantic element.

Want to make your own? Grab the supplies and follow the steps below.

Candlestick holder supplies

My content contains affiliate links to products I use and love. If you take action (purchase, subscribe) after clicking the links, I get some crafting money which helps me continue to write awesome tutorials for you! This costs you nothing but enables you to support my work.

Note: Larceny bottles don’t work for this craft. I found that out after taking the supplies picture. However, most wine, whiskey, and beer bottles will work.

Step 1: size your candlesticks

Adding the candlesticks to the bottle as is can be a bad idea. It makes the bottle topheavy and it can topple over.

I recommend breaking or cutting your candles to keep them from extending too high above the bottle top.

I like to stick the candlestick in upside down (wick inside the bottle) to see which point on the candlestick is thick enough for it to fit in the bottle opening. Then, I break it a bit lower than that area.

You can also use scissors or a knife to shape the top of the candle if you had to break it toward the bottom and can’t use the original top.

So break your candlestick and wedge it into the bottle opening.

Step 2: light the candle

Yep, it’s that easy. when your candle is secure in the bottle and you’re sure it won’t fall out, go ahead and light it.

Wax will drip down the side of the bottle and possibly onto the surface it’s sitting on, so I recommend setting them on a plate or some other base to catch the wax.

You know, these would be great for events like weddings or banquets. They make beautiful centerpieces!

I’d love to get your thoughts! Have you tried this before? If you made one, where would you put it?

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One reason I love the holidays is because I (sometimes) get downtime. I don’t do anything crazy with it, but I like to read when I’m able to.

Recently, I’ve started reading physical books instead of using my Kindle. Don’t get me wrong, an e-reader is great, but when you spend 10 hours a day looking at a screen you might want to give your eyeballs a break. I’m in that camp right now. Because I haven’t read a physical book in a while I didn’t have any bookmarks so, of course, I made some.

What’s great about these DIY bookmarks is that you can make them quickly and it’s a fun project to do with the little ones. Just make sure they don’t eat the beads.

Want to make your own? Grab the supplies and follow the steps below.

Beaded bookmark supplies

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Step 1: add your beads to the rope

When you choose a sequence of beads your like, slide the onto the rope or jute and tie a knot at the end.

You might also want to tie another knot above the beads to make sure they don’t slide around. I ended up adding one after making these.

Step 2: add beads to the other end of the rope

I made my bookmark long so it would work with books of many sizes (. Cut yours to whatever size you like best.

Add a charm or more beads to the other end of the rope.

Follow the same process: tie a knot at the end to keep it from sliding off.

You’re done! Yeah, it’s that easy. Choosing the beads and charms is the hardest part. 🙂

I’d love to see your bookmarks! If you post pictures on social media use the hashtag #MakeSomethingMondays to share them with me.

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Every year, there are a handful of people that tell me they want gift cards for Christmas. I love that because it ensures they get something they’ll use.

The problem, for me, is that it’s too easy and I feel like I don’t put enough effort into it. These are people I love! I want to put some thought into their presents. So, I like to make my own gift card holders.

This year, there were quite a few people that wanted gift cards, so I got to work on those way more adorable envelopes.

I wasn’t feeling particularly festive though. Possibly because everything is red and green right now. I just wasn’t feeling it so, I used patterns typically not associated with the holidays. BUT if you’re still feeling festive, I have a link to some really cute Christmas scrapbook paper in the supply list.

If you want to make your own, grab the supplies and follow the steps below!

Gift card holder supplies

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Step 1: Download the gift card template

Download the template from the supply list above. I’ve put two templates per page so you can print it directly onto your scrapbook paper. I promise it saves a lot of time.

Remember to put your scrapbook paper design side up into the printer so it will print the template (or the blank side).

Cut out the template.

If for some reason you can’t print directly to the scrapbook paper, you can print the template, cut it out, and trace it onto the scrapbook paper.

Step 2: score the folds and add the slits

Using your utility knife, lightly score the fold lines. Remember to do this on the side with the design. It will make the folded edges look cleaner.

Then, cut the slit lines for the gift card.

If you want, you can ad slits for the envelope flap. Otherwise, I like to put a festive To and From sticker over it the hold everything together.

Give them a try and let me know what you think! Leave your feedback in the comments.